DOMINION NEWS.

Hokitika Guardian, 9 July 1927, Page 3

DOMINION NEWS.

(By Telegraph—Per Press Association.) TOWN BOARD RESIGNS. DISPUTE WITH CHAIRMAN*. WiIAXCAREI, July 7. Before opening business at the regular meeting of the ilikitrnngi Town Board on luosdny night, the standing orders were suspended to consider a petition signed by five members, calling on the chairman Mr R. (,'. Cherric, to vacate the chair.

The petition stated: " We the undersigned commissioners hereby respectfully ask you to vacate the chair. This is not a personal matter in any way. Imt we consider it in the best interests of the electors and that it will facilitate the functions of the hoard; aiso that il would lie conducive to hotter feeling during the meetings and expedite the business.” Mr Cherrie refused to vacate the chair, whereupon it was resolved that the heal'd resign in a body and go before the electors for the election of a new hoard.”

five voted in favour of the motion and one member refrained from voting, the chairman being the only one to oppose the motion.

1 1 was further resolved to convene meeting of electors to explain the po:

lion, the voting being the same as on the previous motmn.

N.Z. MAIN ROADS PRAISED. AUCKLAND, JmV 7

“ The highways of New Zealand have astonished me and they are generally superior to Canadian road-.” said .Mr V. Shipway, of Detroit, representative for Dodge Bros.' motor vehicles, who has arrived at Auckland in the course of a tour of Australia and New Zealand. ” I did not expect to find such advancement in this young country," he stiid. “ Although we have State highways in concrete throughout America. the main roads of New Zealand are decidedly hotter than our bywavs.”

Tie athled that he had driven a twoseater ear from AYollinglon to Gisborne and hack, and had traversed the I’inmtakn ranges, without difficulty. Continuous loading over a distance was an agreeable surprise to the visitor.

KILLINC OPOSSUMS. WITHOUT A LICENSE. PALMERSTON N.. July !’>. Pleading guilty in the Magistrate's Court in having killed opossums at Tititca on April lit without a license, and also to having been louml with opossum skins in his possession. Douglas Gordon Reid, a young man. was fined £j2 10s on each charge by Messrs G. Tl. Bennett and T. R. Dodder. J.TVs.

Mr P. (!. Wilson, ranger for the Wellington Acclimatisation Society, stated that the defendant had been found with another man with 18 skins in their possession, lor each ol which they were liable to a lino ol (-'■>. Reid was an experienced trapper, and should have known better than to have killed opossums without a Ticeitse.

ARSON INQUIRIES. NEW PLYMOUTH, July 8. That a house in Rnllei- Street, owned l>v Ernest Cyril Steele, a painter, was wilfully set alight by some person was the finding ol Mr R. W • late. S.M.. Coroner, following on an inrjiiiry to-day into the cau-es o! the outbreak ol the lire on June -5. Evidence given by hire Brigade and police* uitnvs-cs was that a neighbour heard an explosion, and saw a glimmer (brought a window of Steele’- konst-. He summoned the Brigade, and tile door was forced, ami the Brigade men found the place filled with smoke and benzine fumes. Iletklollies and paper strewn about were ablaze, and the room was liberally sprinkled with benzine. The lire was -tamped out. Evidently a trail of paper had been laid from a packing case in another room to that which contained the benzine, and the explosion had blown charred paper about the house, and partly extinguished the fire. The house was insured up to its luli' value, and little furniture was in it.

Steele admitted that he intended to leave lor Napier Hie following week, and therefore had some of his clothing in the laundry. He admitted purchasing three bottles of benzine from a store, two of which were lound in the room, while the other he used to clean it suit. A defective said that when he interviewed Steele on the night of the lire he was apparently partly intoxicated. He had a scar on his nose and mud on his hands, lie refused to make any statement as to his movements. In evidence, Steele* described his movements, stating that on that evening he went down to the I nkapa Bach, on the beach, falling on the track and. injuring his nose.

A CHRISTCHURCH IXQUi BY. ('l l RLSTC'J I UKCi I. duly 3. At the Addington cyelery lire inquiry McCloiu, in evidence, said he would have valued the stock at 1-200 at the time of the fire. The Magistrate: Do you suspect, that somebody set lire to the simp? Witness: 'Well, of course, every man has enemies; hut I wouldn’t like to lay suspicion on anybody. The Magistrate found that the contents wore insured lor at least double the cost of replacement., and that henzinc was stored on the premises in excess of the quantity allowed under the insurance policy.

** The premises were wiltully set on fire.” lie said. ■■ lmt there is not suliii ient evidence to establish hy whom. POISON TRAGEDY. CHRISTCHI'RCIi. July 8. “If anything happens to me. 1 cannot. help it. ’ wrote 1* roderick C mules Lawrenson t > relatives, prior to ids admittance to the C h! istchumi Hospital on Wednesday evening, suffering from acid poisoning, from which lie died on Thursday. “1 know it is either this or the asylum. The agony I have t een suffering is unbearable.” The above note was produced at the inquest, before Mr Mosly, S.M.. today. The evidence was that Law reason had .suffered from a minor complaint (piles), which caused him great pain at times. At the hospital, poison antidotes were administered, and for twelve hours his condition improved. hut afterwards he grew worse. The inquest was adjourned pending a l> si mortem.

MAIN HIGHWAYS. SUBSIDY FOR BOROUGHS. WELLINGTON. July 8. A deputation, composed of twenty members of Parliament, waited on the Minister of Public Works (Hon K. S. Williams) to-day. to ask that the same subsidy for Main Highways should he made to boroughs as is granted to County Councils for e uistnu tionnl purposes.

Mr J. I.inklnter (Mnnawntu) pointed out- that no provision for construction was provided for small boroughs, which felt that a great responsibility had been thrown upon them financially. In some cases that responsibility could not be met. and it was asked that small boroughs should bo placed upon the same footing as County Conn-

ells, so far as the subsidy for construction costs were concerned. Tf that request were not granted, it would mean that in ninny eases, where the boroughs wore small, the highway would not ho constructed. Most boroughs lie thought, would he satisfied with the subsidy granted to the Comity Councils, on the ordinary 18 loot to 2J feet road that constitued a ltigh-

Tho Minister gave a sympathetic reply, and while not being able to promise lei go to the whole length of the requests, an amendment of the Highways Act would he brought down in the direction of giving assistance to the small boroughs.

SENTENCES PASSED. WELLINGTON, July 8. The following prisoners were sc-n----i teiiced by Judge Ostler:— William Guthrie Smith. burglary and thefts of rings and jewellery, at Dannevirke, reformative detention for not more than three years. Hugh Goodlet, burglary, at Gisborne, reformative detention for not more than five years. John Bernard MacDonald burglary at Pic-ton. reformative treatment lor not more than two years. Henry .Mitchell Fisher, defalcations a Taihape. nine mouths’ hard labour. DUNKDTN, July 8. At the police court. William A\ illiamson charged with stealing a letter containing £5 at Lawrence, was sentenced to three* months' imprisonment. Charley Carney, stealing an attache case from a motor car, got two months’ imprisonment. Edwin Alphuii-oits Gawne. ((inverting a motor ear to his own use. was admitted to two years' probation. John Patrick* A hornethly, licensed out from Wernroa training larm and an absconder from service in Taranaki ami Mal.'ipu, was charged with theft ol bicycles at llawern and Christchurch and goods at Maverley and Wanganui. Ho was sentenced to three years at the 'Borstal Institute.

Karl Johansen, waterside!', pillaging a bottle of whisky from the steamer Tekoa. was ordered seven days' imprisonment. A detective slated that i n 1925, goods valued at £lo*Bo were missed from thi- port. East year's figure was IMO 7.

MOTOR QUESTION. GISBORNE, July 8,

At a Hireling of Urn Gisborne Brain '1 of the New Zealand Licensing Reform Association, the following resolutions were cinied unanimously:— I. That this meeting protests against tlm exploitation of Parliament by the extienlists for the purpose of imposing unwarranted rest riet ions on that great majority of the people cl New Zealand who hold dillorent \ieus from them mi matters relating to social responsibility and individual choice.

2. That this meeting pretests against the renewed attempt being made to dragoon the members ol Parliament into the disfranchisement o! a large body of public thought by the removal of the middle i tie on the licensing hallo paper. H. That, in the opinion of this meet-

ing. tin* time has rime when Parliament should deal fearlessly with licensing legislation in the interests ei real reform' . ■I. That this meeting urges upon the Dominion Executive ol this A.-.- *( lotion that, ii organise the f-'revs ol moderation lot* the purpose of resisting. bv every means in uur power. ihc threatened domination of the peoples Parliament by the Imre.- <4 extremism and intolerance. A STRONG ATTACK. AUCKLAND. July

Responding to the toast of the Auckland Education Board at the annual dinner of the Headmasters’ Association last night, Mr 11. S. \V. King, said the cause of education seemed to he getting in rather parlous slate, lie had been fell of fears over the utterance ol various public men. Auckland had im-reas-o,| in population more rapidly than an> other province and the work ol *ho . Education Board had increased correspondingly. One would have expected the Board would therefore get more support from representatives ol Um people in Parliament, hut there was a dangerous tendency to give the Board less amount of money for the greater work it had: to do. H was time some of them spoke out: and saw the people got what they wanted. In this matter he did not wish to make any attack on the Minister ol Education, who had no doubt to be guided by his departmental experts but 7he State which had taken the job on hand, should do it properly or leave it („ others, lie did not think the abolition of Boards was even likely toj-omo about, because it would he strongly resisted by the people themselves. He thought it wind'd he an improvement to follow the English system and have an Education Committee on every haul |„„|y. People did not value the thing so much when they tin not have to pav for it, directly out ol' their own pockets. If they had to pay the local education rate, they would sit up anil take a great deal more notice nl educational matters. At present they were in many eases hound hand and foot by unfair regulations. The child was the greatest asset the country had. and teachers would always have his sympathy. Any little lack of sei'f-sa orifice on their part for children would mean sometimes a detriment to the well being of the country, and lie was sure they realised that.